After participating in groundbreaking research, man dies years after stabbing

Wednesday

Jul 25, 2007 at 12:01 AMJul 25, 2007 at 1:20 PM

After six years of fighting to find a way to walk again, Matthew Nagle, a former Weymouth High School student who was stabbed at a party in 2001, died of a blood infection on Tuesday.

By Kristin Walsh

Matthew Nagle, a remarkable young man who overcame great odds and contributed to groundbreaking scientific research, found a way to help others even after his death.

Nagle, 27, died Tuesday at Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton after falling into a weeklong coma brought on by sepsis, an infection of the blood.

Ellen and Pat Nagle of Weymouth made the decision to donate their son’s liver, two kidneys and his skin to patients on the organ donor registry after he was declared brain dead on Monday.

“He’ll live on and help someone else. That’s what Matt would have wanted,” Ellen Nagle said.

Matthew Nagle was paralyzed from the shoulders down when he was stabbed behind the ear during a fight at Weymouth’s fireworks celebration on July 3, 2001.

In addition to losing all feeling below his neck, Nagle was left unable to breathe without a ventilator, and his voice became nearly inaudible because of scar tissue that grew over his vocal cords.

In 2004, Nagle was part of a Brown University experiment with a device called BrainGate, becoming the first person to try a sensory chip that tapped directly into electrical activity in the brain.

The chip, which was later removed, allowed him to control external devices, such as a computer cursor, or to turn a television on and off.

Nagle received full-time care at New England Sinai Rehabilitation Center in Stoughton. In March 2006, Nagle was taken off the ventilator, as he became able to breathe on his own.

Ellen Nagle said she last spoke with her son the day before he developed the infection, at a weekly family dinner at their Weymouth home.

“We sat outside for two hours, just him and me, and had the most amazing heart to heart,” Ellen Nagle said. “He told me how grateful he was and how much he loved his dad and me. He also said that every day was so hard for him, and I asked God to give him some hope.”

Two Nagle family friends, Jerry DiLillo and Ron Pollara, started the Miracles for Matthew Fund after he was stabbed.

In the last six years, events like bike rides and benefit dinners have raised about $80,000 for people with spinal cord injuries.

“He was wonderful caring, brave and strong, and a leader. Those would be the words that come to my mind right away on every level,” DiLillo said. “He led the charge and was willing to volunteer in any situation if it was a step toward walking again.”

At a fundraiser in October 2006, Nagle was still hoping that someday all the research would pay off in the way that mattered to him most: allowing him to walk again.

In 2005, Nicholas Cirignano, the man who stabbed Nagle, was convicted of armed assault with intent to kill and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

He was sentenced to nine to 10 years in state prison, to be followed by 10 years of probation when he is released.

Last month, an appeal of Cirignano’s sentence was denied.

Dr. Jon Mukand, a neurologist and principal investigator of the BrainGate clinical team, interviewed Nagle and is writing a book about him. Mukand asked the Nagle family if he could keep Matthew’s brain for posterity.

Ellen Nagle said in recent months, she sensed Matthew was at peace with his situation. Although his everyday life was a struggle, he never failed to express his gratitude and love to the people he cared about.

“He was an absolute gift. He wasn’t a saint, but he really was about helping other people,” she said. “I think he was in a good place, he did what he needed to do now and I think he was ready to move on.”

DiLillo said what Nagle did do, including participating in research studies, set the foundation for many others with similar injuries.

“We’ll miss him. He was quite a young man. He was very courageous, and he always had a smile on his face,” DiLillo said.

Visiting hours will be held from 2 to 8 p.m. on Friday at McDonald Funeral Home, Main St., Weymouth.

A funeral will be held at noon on Saturday at St. Francis Xavier Church, 236 Pleasant St., South Weymouth.

Kristen Walsh of The Patriot Ledger (Quincy, Mass.) may be reached at Kwalsh@ledger.com.

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